U.S. POWER POLICY is undergoing full-dress review by Administration. It is considering more public power for Pacific Northwest, where Republican senatorial candidates lost to public power proponents. Under debate: federal construction of two huge, multipurpose dams (for power, flood control, irrigation, etc.) on Columbia and Snake River sites now earmarked for private development of smaller, power-only dams.

AMERICAN PETROFINA, U.S. subsidiary of Belgium's biggest oil company, is buying heavily into Southwest oil industry, will pay $34 million for Dallas' American Liberty Oil Co. Coming on top of Petrofina's recent purchase of Panhandle Oil Corp. (TIME, June 25), deal will pump American Petrofina's assets up to $90 million, including 500 retail outlets in Texas and Oklahoma.

ROUND-THE-WORLD FLIGHTS will be offered early in 1957 by Trans World Airlines, second U.S. carrier to do so (first: Pan American World Airways). T.W.A. got CAB approval to extend its route eastward from Bombay and Ceylon to Manila, link up there with Northwest Airlines.

FIRST MOVE INTO SOUTH will be made by No. 1 U.S. producer of timber products, Tacoma's Weyerhaeuser Timber Co. Venturing out of Pacific Northwest, where it holds 2,600,000 acres of timberlands, Weyerhaeuser will take options from Mississippi Pulp & Paper Co. and other local owners on 90,000 acres of logged-off pinelands in Mississippi and Alabama, reforest the land, eventually build a major pulping plant near Columbus, Miss.

RAIL INCOME SLUMP is stoking up demand for another freight rate hike. Despite rise in carloadings in 1956, higher costs trimmed net income of nation's Class 1 rails to $875 million, off $52 million from 1955. Eastern railways may ask the Interstate Commerce Commission for 15% rate boost on top of recent 7% emergency hike, Western railways for 17% raise in addition to recent 5% increase.

SUPERCHARGED ENGINE, officially rated at 300 h.p., will be offered for $447 extra on Fords and Thunderbirds as Ford's answer to Chevrolet's 283-h.p. fuel injection engine. New Ford V-8 engine uses no manifold vacuum to draw fuel to carburetor; instead, fuel-air mixture is blown into cylinders.

NEW NATURAL-GAS BILL is being drafted by Texas oilmen, who are readying united-front to fight federal control of field gas prices. Oilmen will push bill in next Congress, hope to lessen opposition of consumer groups by including in draft a clause designed to protect gas users against overpricing.

WHEAT PRICES will rise this year, after recent downtrend. Soil bank is expected to take 15 million acres out of use, help trim 150 million bu. to 200 million bu. off 1956 crop of some 990 million bu., reduce surplus for first time since Korean war. Exports are also up 100% over last year because of loosened Government controls on shipments, U.S. aid to foreign buyers, wheat shortage in Europe.

SAHARA DESERT RICHES will be exploited by France as result of new oil find under Algerian sands near Ouargla. On basis of three proven wells, estimates of pool run as high as 7 billion bbls. Under government administrator, state committees of French and Algerian representatives will set up development plan, centralize work of private and state-run companies now trying to tap desert's mineral wealth.

BUS-AIR FREIGHT combination service will be started by Greyhound Corp. To link 6,000 U.S. communities that do not have direct air freight, Greyhound will pick up and deliver packages of less than 100 Ibs. for nearest freight airport.

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